PSG possible starting XI for Ligue 1 encounter against Lille

Left winger - Kylian Mbappe

Manchester City v Paris Saint-Germain: Group A - UEFA Champions League

Kylian Mbappe has been the main man for PSG in attack this term. With Neymar still on the road to recovery, Pochettino will once again hope that Mbappe will be able to conjure up some moments of magic in the final third.

Pochettino discussed Neymar's progress in the pre-match press conference. He said:

“Neymar has received therapy today, he will work in the gym for the next 48 hours and then resume partial work with his teammates.”

Mbappe is likely to start on the left wing. He has scored 10 goals and provided nine assists in 20 Ligue 1 appearances so far this term. The 23 year old has been in sublime form of late. In his last seven appearances for PSG, Mbappe has scored five goals and provided four assists.

Centre-forward - Mauro Icardi

Sevilla v Paris Saint-Germain - Pre-Season Friendly

Mauro Icardi is not a great fit for Mauricio Pochettino's system at PSG. He has struggled to score goals at as prolific a rate as he used to during his time at Inter Milan. Icardi has also failed to make the most of the opportunities he has received of late due to PSG's injury concerns.

He has scored just a single goal in his last 16 appearances and is very likely to be offloaded in the summer. The Argentinian striker will need to up his game a lot if he is looking to secure a move to one of Europe's top clubs.

Right-winger - Lionel Messi

Lionel Messi was booed off the pitch after PSG's defeat against OGC Nice in the Coupe de France in midweek. Messi turned in an extremely lackluster performance but in all fairness, it was his first game since contracting the coronavirus.

Messi has not been able to meet the expectations of fans, particularly in Ligue 1. In 12 appearances in the league so far this term, Messi has scored just a single goal but has provided five assists.

Questions are already being asked about Messi's ability to carry on at the level that we're used to seeing him operate.

About the author

Shambhu is a European and international football journalist at Sportskeeda who focuses on previews, listicles and news articles. An ardent Manchester United supporter since before his teenage years, he started following the Red Devils by age 10 watching MUTV on television. Shambhu is also a highly-revered rapper and a playback singer on Spotify, having a whopping 1 million monthly listeners.

For his articles, Shambhu believes in triple-checking every piece of information, relying on trusted websites like Transfermarkt and Opta, and staying away from speculative publications. He believes that his law degree helped him to be more articulate and meticulous with his content and one of his core strengths is seamlessly involving emotion in his write-ups owing to the love for the sport. For Sportskeeda, has done exclusive interviews with Spanish legends Gaizka Mendieta and Fernando Morientes so far, and his articles boast of a huge readership of close to 50 million.

Shambhu's favorite footballer is Lionel Messi, and the Argentine attaining glory in 2022 is his favorite FIFA World Cup moment. He believes only Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland could replicate Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo's rivalry in the years to come. His favorite manager is Sir Alex Ferguson due to the Scot's unmatched longevity at the top.

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Edited by Shambhu Ajith